Influence of the natural and built environment on life satisfaction in Australia

Abstract

The narrative of the twentieth century is dominated by three key trends: population growth, economic growth and urbanisation. Moreover, these trends are expected to continue well into the twenty-first century. Australia has not been immune to these trends. Australia’s population is projected to increase by 65 per cent to over 35 million by 2049, and be accompanied by a growth in per-capita Gross Domestic Product of 1.5 per cent per annum. Much of this population and economic growth will be concentrated in an already highly urbanised environment. As a consequence, the natural and built environments in which the majority of Australians live are likely to undergo rapid change. It is useful therefore, to better understand our relationship with these environments. Using data from the Household Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) survey, the Australian Bureau of Statistics’ (ABS) Census of Population and Housing, and Geographic Information Systems (GIS), this paper examines the link between the natural and built environment and life satisfaction in Australia. The results indicate that natural environmental assets such as national parks, urban parks and the coastline enter as amenities. In contrast, creeks and major roads are disamenities. Further, an examination of the effect of climate variables and surrounding dwelling types reveals that many of these factors also exhibit statistically significant effects on life satisfaction.